Cotomono Marche’s original brand ‘BUTTON&CUFFLINKS’ has released a selection of earrings and brooches inspired by popular Sanrio characters! These are available online and at select Cotomono Marche stores. 

The accessories are inspired by Hello Kitty, Cinnamoroll, Pompompurin, My Melody, Kuromi, and Little Twin Stars, and are perfect for Sanrio fans of any age. 

Earrings: ¥2,750 (Tax Included) / Brooch: ¥1,650 (Tax Included)

Hello Kitty debuted in 1974 and continues to captivate fans around the world. The character peeking out from behind an apple is an original design for the collaboration. 

Pompompurin and Cinnamoroll have been transformed into adorable accessories, while My Melody and Kuromi are featured in two different color palettes: seasonal pastel or vivid. 

The Little Twin Stars accessories are perfect for wearing with a friend, with a different character on each ear!

The anime film Promare is collaborating with Sanrio’s Little Twin Stars again with an exclusive merchandise collection online at THE CHARA SHOP until July 26.

Wire Keyring Illustrated by Shigeto Koyama | 2 Designs | ¥880 Each (Tax Included)

Mirror Illustrated by Shigeto Koyama |  ¥880 Each (Tax Included)

Mini Towels Illustrated by Shigeto Koyama | 2 Designs | ¥990 Each (Tax Included)

Pin Set Illustrated by Shigeto Koyama | ¥1,320 (Tax Included)

Acrylic Stand Illustrated by Shigeto Koyama | 2 Designs | ¥1,430 Each (Tax Included)

Mug Illustrated by Shigeto Koyama | ¥1,650 (Tax Included)

Tote Bag | ¥2,200 (Tax Included)

The merchandise collection features adorable designs illustrated by Shigeto Koyama in the style of Sanrio’s Little Twin Stars.

©TRIGGER・中島かずき／XFLAG © ’21 SANRIO CO., LTD. APPR. NO. S620339

Sanrio’s popular character duo Kiki & Lala, also known as the Little Twin Stars, are have brought their dreamy, pastel-coloured world to Tokyo Tower with a special summer event titled “Little Twin Stars Summer Night Fantasy Meets Kiki & Lala Exhibition produced by LIDDELL” which began on July 10.

At the event entrance, guests are given a special ‘passport’ notebook which is stamped before entering, allowing access to Kiki & Lala’s world in the clouds above.

Guests are guided by Kiki & Lala’s voice through the rose-coloured “Star & Rose-Coloured Cloud Fantasy Gate” were they are met with five different booths.

At Kiki’s Star Catching booth, visitors can experience one of Kiki’s favourite past times by ‘catching’ stars. The stars that are caught can be taken home as a fun memory.

There’s also the Starry Sky Light Shower booth which is decorated with mirror balls that reflect the light as well as a wall featuring words and phrases said by the twins, the pink and light blue-coloured Kiki & Lala’s Playroom where you can snap cute photos, the Glittering Moviegenic booth which uses your smartphone to watch an animation of Kiki & Lala, and more.

Fans of the twins can enjoy an exhibit of various artworks too, including the 8-meter tall Fantasy Wall which depicts the world above the clouds.

The day before the exhibition began, on July 9, Tokyo Tower was lit up in blue and pink Kiki & Lala colours from 19:30 to midnight. It was a special one-night experience.

If you’re in Tokyo this summer, soar up high into Kiki & Lala’s world at Tokyo Tower.

©‘21 SANRIO 著作（株）サンリオ

The anime film Promare, Sanrio’s Little Twin Stars, and THE CHARA SHOP teamed up to release a collaborative merchandise collection at Shinjuku Marui on July 1.

Wire Keyring Illustrated by Shigeto Koyama | 2 Designs | ¥880 Each (Tax Included)

Mirror Illustrated by Shigeto Koyama |  ¥880 Each (Tax Included)

Mini Towels Illustrated by Shigeto Koyama | 2 Designs | ¥990 Each (Tax Included)

Pin Set Illustrated by Shigeto Koyama | ¥1,320 (Tax Included)

Acrylic Stand Illustrated by Shigeto Koyama | 2 Designs | ¥1,430 Each (Tax Included)

Mug Illustrated by Shigeto Koyama | ¥1,650 (Tax Included)

Tote Bag | ¥2,200 (Tax Included)

Freebies for every ¥3,000 spent on merchandsie

The merchandise collection features adorable designs illustrated by Shigeto Koyama in the style of Sanrio’s Little Twin Stars.

©TRIGGER・中島かずき／XFLAG © ’21 SANRIO CO., LTD. APPR. NO. S620339

Sanrio’s popular character duo Kiki & Lala, also known as the Little Twin Stars, are set to delivery their dreamy, pastel-coloured world to Tokyo Tower with a special summer event titled “LittleTwinStars Summer Night Fantasy Meets Kiki & Lala Exhibition produced by LIDDELL” which will begin on July 10.

LittleTwinStars Summer Night Fantasy Meets Kiki & Lala Exhibition produced by LIDDELL

The exhibition will feature lots of kawaii artwork of the twins across seven different booths, each with their own art.

Passport Notebook

A special ‘passport’ notebook will also be sold at the exhibition which if bought, can be stamped at the entrance with an exclusive stamp to make it look like you went travelling to Kiki & Lala’s world.

LittleTwinStars Summer Night Fantasy Meets Kiki & Lala Exhibition produced by LIDDELL

Running: July 10, 2021 – July 25, 2021

Opening Hours: 11:00-20:00

*60 minute slots / 75 people per slot / 6 slots per day
Location; Tokyo Tower

TOKYO TOWER CITY LIGHT FANTASIA -LittleTwinStars-

A projection mapping show will also take place on Tokyo Tower’s second floor main deck. The three-minute show will see Kiki & Lala amongst the fireworks, at the beach, and more, with the real Tokyo cityscape in the background.

TOKYO TOWER CITY LIGHT FANTASIA -LittleTwinStars-

June 21, 2021 – August 26, 2021 @ 19:00 until closure

August 27, 2021 – September 16, 2021 @ 18:30 until closure

September 17, 2021 – September 30, 2021 @ 18:00 until closure

*Subject to change depending on COVID-19

Location; Tokyo Tower Main Deck (Floor 2F)

Tokyo Tower x Kiki & Lala Merchandise

Kiki & Lala fans can get their hands on a cute selection of merchandise featuring the artwork of the exhibition’s main visuals such as pins, keyrings, and more. The first 3,000 people to buy something will also receive a limited-edition shopping bag.

The day before the exhibition begins, on July 9, Tokyo Tower will be lit up in blue and pink Kiki & Lala colours from 19:30 to midnight. Join the Little Twin Stars for a special summer in Tokyo.

©‘21 SANRIO 著作（株）サンリオ

Sanrio and joined hands with the hearable device series Zeeny, which enables the voice reading of messages received on smartphones, to release a collection of earphone featuring Hello Kitty, Pompompurin, Cinnamoroll, Little Twin Stars, and Pochacco designs. The collection is available to buy in Japan until September 19.

Hello Kitty

Pompompurin

Cinnamoroll

Little Twin Stars

Pochacco

Zeeny is a hearable device that supports voice notifications and reads out the notifications that pop up on your smartphone. It supports music, calls, voice assistants, and more. This new collection features newly-recorded voices of the Sanrio characters.

The Hello Kitty model is limited to just 300 and is equipped with high-quality Zeeny ANC sound. It has active noise-cancelling to allow the user to be more immersed in their music without distractions, and of course has Hello Kitty’s voice to assist them.

The Pompompurin, Cinnamoroll, Little Twin Stars, and Pochacco models are limited 250. All are equipped with Zeeny Lights which won the VGP audio awards in Japan. These earphones also work with wireless devices.

Zeeny, Spicetoneは、日本で登録されたNain Inc.の商標です。
その他、記載されている商品名、技術名および会社名等は、各社の商標または登録商標です。

Digital content enterprise Cocone has made Sanrio’s popular character dress-up game Hello Sweet Days available in the US, Canada, and South Korea. The app hit the overseas countries on June 10, allowing for fans outside Japan to enjoy dressing their avatars up like their favourite Sanrio characters.

Hello Sweet Days first launched in Japan back in August 2017 and has since amassed over 2 million downloads. It rolled out to Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macao in 2020, and now an English version has finally been made available. There are plans to release the app to even more countries in the future.

Pre-registration opened early in South Korea on May 24 when it garnered 60,000 advance sign-ups. Those who registered early even received K-pop idol-style fashion items. Since releasing last Thursday, it is now being used by over 300,000 fans in South Korea.

Head on over to the App Store or Google Play and enjoy Hello Sweet Days in English now!

© 2021 SANRIO CO., LTD. TOKYO, JAPAN Ⓗ. APPROVAL NO. S620438 ©cocone corp.

Sanrio announced the final results and winners of the 36th Sanrio Character Ranking, an annual event where fans vote for their favourite Sanrio character to see who is the most popular. A total of 21,346,750 votes were submitted for 2021.

2021 Sanrio Character Ranking: General Ranking

Comments from the Winners

1st Place: Cinnamoroll
“I’m going to treasure this feeling forever! Thank you all for your support!♪”

2nd Place: Pompompurin
“Thanks so much for cheering me on!♡ I’m so grateful for all the love!”

3rd Place: Pochacco
“I can’t believe I got 3rd again this year! It’s thanks to all your support! I’m going to try hard next year too!”

2021 Sanrio Character Ranking: Collaboration Category

This year sees Cinnamoroll take the top spot for the second year in a row. In the first round-up of announcements, Cinnamoroll was already at number one, but in the second round-up he dipped to 2nd place. That didn’t stop him however as after gaining over 2.3 million votes, he grabbed that shiny crown once again. Pompompurin, who is celebrating his 25th anniversary this year, came in 2nd again, and Pochacco in 3rd again. Hello Kitty, who ranked 5th last year, came in 6th place this year – a place she kept since the second round-up. SHOW BY ROCK!! who will commemorate her 10th anniversary next year came in 8th once again. Kuromi, who received much love from overseas fans this year, climbed from last year’s 7th to 5th this year, making it the first time she has clocked in the Top 5 spot in 11 years. Cogimyun came in 10th after coming in 13th last year, making it her first time in the Top 10.

The Collaboration Category, which began in 2013, saw 27 entrees from different businesses and creators. Popular creators Azuki and Hapidanbui took 1st place this year.

Sanrio has announced that the announcement ceremony for the winner of the 2021 Sanrio Character Ranking will take place in collaboration with Tokyo Girls Collection (TGC), a semi-annual fashion festival in Tokyo, on June 8. The event will be streamed live on Hello Kitty and TCG’s respective LINE accounts, as well as Sanrio’s official YouTube account, so that more people can tune in to this year’s announcement and see which of Sanrio’s characters will take the crown.

80 characters are participating in this year’s Sanrio Character Ranking which will be announced in order from 80 to 1. This year also sees the return of the sub-award categories including Collaboration. Hosting the event as MC is tarento and actress Nao Asahi and the Japanese comedy duo Wagyu ga Tsutome.

But the winner announcement is not the only event scheduled for 2021’s ranking. Since this time is a collaboration with TGC, there will be a fashion runway where popular models will show off their looks, a live performance with JO1 and the Sanrio characters, a rap battle, and more.

Fashion Runway: Famous models display the Sanrio character aesthetic

On the fashion stage, a line-up of well-known Japanese models will serve fashion inspired by Sanrio’s most famous characters including My Melody, Kuromi, Little Twin Stars, and Pompompurin.

Marie Iitoyo and Maika Yamamoto will use a real-time composite photography system as they dress up as the adorable My Melody and her rival Kuromi. Serving the dreamy star-filled world of Kiki and Lala are Kaane and Sakura Saiga, Yoshiaki & Michi, and Rikariko. For the Pompompurin section, which is themed on the golden retriever’s daily life, we have Nana Kato, Ami Komuro, Natsuki Deguchi, Sachi Fujii, and Roy. But that’s not all as Sakachin, Yuki Higashihara, and Reina, who won the LINE LIVE auditions to appear on this year’s fashion runway, will also appear.

A heated rap battle between the Sanrio characters

In the rap battle, KIRIMI-chan, Kuromi, Kogimyun, and Pompompurin will go head to head against special guests Tsukasa Saito of comedy duo Trendy Angel and Yuriyan Retriever. 

The Sanrio cast join music artists for a concert

The adorable Cinnamoroll, who is also expanding his work as an idol, will perform alongside JO1, while Hello Kitty will sing with singer-songwriter Sonoko Inoue.

A new virtual experience using the latest technology

Japanese digital advertising company CyberAgent, who produced virtual events and 3DCG content, will be using the latest in 3DCG and XR tech to blur the lines between reality and the virtual space with an interactive experience, such as people’s comments on social media and the video displaying in real time, and more.

The Shinjuku branch of EGG & SPUMA is now hosting “Sanrio Characters CAFE,” a menu of food and drink themed on Sanrio’s beloved characters. Running until August 31, the cafe has also been decorated in colourful and cute Sanrio designs.

Receive a free coaster with your order

The menu line-up features lots of fruits, including the Cinnamoroll crème brûlée which is served on weekdays only, fruit sandwiches which will include My Melody themed ones this month and June, Hello Kitty and Keroppi ones in July, and Little Twin Stars in August. There’s also fruity jelly and more.

If you’re a Sanrio fan look to indulge a little more, then there is also a two-tiered afternoon tea set. The upper plate includes Kiki & Lala sandwiches, a Keroppi tart, the Cinnamoroll crème brûlée, and more. On the bottom plate there is Hello Kitty apple jelly, My Melody strawberry caprese salad, Kuromi canapé, and so on. There will also be special pancakes and a jelly dessert arriving in June which must be booked in advance.

Which of these Instagram-worthy delights do you want to tuck into?

Sanrio released their own Google AR features which has Hello Kitty, Pompompurin, Little Twin Stars, and Cogimyun appear as AR characters when you search their names in Japanese on Google. The release comes in response to fans being unable to meet with their favourite characters at various events and at Sanrio’s parks. The function is available until the end of 2021.

When users type Hello Kitty (ハローキティ) on their smartphones into Google and press the AR button on the search engine, she will appear on their screens and say a message either in Japanese or English. Pompompurin and Cogimyun’s messages are only in Japanese, while the Kiki and Lala sing a theme song when you enter Little Twin Stars.

Spend time with your favourite characters in all situations

©‘21 SANRIO S/F・G 著作（株）サンリオ

Sanrio has finally announced news about the 36th annual Sanrio Character Ranking. This year’s award event, the 2021 Sanrio Character Ranking, will open initial votes on April 9 to May 24 when fans can vote for their favourite character from Sanrio’s roster. As with previous years, the 2021 run will also welcome the “Collaboration Category” of the awards which will feature 27 character entries from those who have collaborated with other companies and businesses over the past year.

Ichigo Shimbun is a monthly magazine published by Sanrio. It not only includes information about the latest character merchandise, but is also the place where the Sanrio Character Ranking first began in 1986. From Sanrio’s long list of over 450 characters, just 80 are entered into the awards each year. Cinnamoroll took first place for the 3rd year in a row at the 2020 Sanrio Character Ranking which we covered in detail, including the initial first round up of winners and second round up.

Normally, the results are announced in-person at a big event. This year’s announcement gathering was originally scheduled for June 8, but was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It will now be hosted online instead, and fans will also be able to vote using the new Sanrio members service Sanrio+.

This year’s 80 entrants are now being rolled out over on the official Sanrio Character Awards Twitter page.

This Year’s Award Theme: “The Witness of a New World – Your Support Will Change the Future”

Every Sanrio Character Awards has a theme, and this year’s is, “The Witness of a New World – Your Support Will Change the Future.” The “new world” refers to the future of Sanrio—which celebrated its 60th anniversary last year—that fans will bear witness to. The key visuals for the 2021 Sanrio Character Awards have the characters holding a magnifying glass with which they are peeking into that new world.

New Entrants Announce Everyday On the Official Twitter Page

The Sanrio Character Rankings’ official Twitter page will post the key visuals and personal messages from all 80 entrants on its official Twitter page between February 26 to March 31. Leading this year’s awards ceremony are the popular characters Kuromi, Badtz-Maru, and Hangyodon. Voting opened on February 25.

How to Cast Your Vote

Votes for the 2021 Sanrio Character Ranking can be cast online, at Sanrio shops, and for the first time, on the new Sanrio members service Sanrio+. Votes for the Collaboration Category however can only be placed online. Last year’s vote was open to all fans worldwide. It is unconfirmed whether this year will be the same, but stay tuned as we follow the event.

1. Online Votes (Smartphone Only) *Cannot be cast on computers or tablets
2. Sanrio Shops
3. Sanrio Online Shop
4. Ichigo Shimbun (May 2021 Issue, on sale April 10 / June 2021 Issue, on sale May 10).

*Ichigo Shimbun voting open from April 10

5. Sanrio+ Members Smile Vote (Sanrio Shops/Online Votes)
6. Sanrio+ Members Ticket Vote (Online Votes) *More info TBA
7. Other Voting Methods (TBA)

Vote With Sanrio+

Sanrio+ allows members to exchange 100 Smiles (the currency on the Sanrio Shop) for two voting chips. Members can exchange a maximum of 1,000 smiles for 20 chips in one go. The chips are spent at the voting box on the Sanrio Shop. One chip counts for a total of three votes.

Additionally, when members first log in to Sanrio+ on the voting website, they can used 50 Smiles to cast one vote. Members can vote with a maximum of 500 smiles in one day. One Smile vote counts for a total of two votes.

Stay tuned for the latest news and updates on the 2021 Sanrio Character Ranking.